Freitag, 28. Februar 2014

Duplicator Slime

"Shoposh of Fyr had not expected a duplicator slime attack while putting upthe new cafeteria sign in the castle courtyard." - illustration by Luka Rejec

Depending on how well nourished it is, a typical specimen of this rare creature has about the mass of a horse or more, and consists of a thick, slithering puddle of green slime interspersed with lots of eyes, bones, and sharp teeth. These eyes, bones and teeth flow around chaotically in the slime and make it quite an unsettling sight that can strike fear into the heart of the boldest adventurer.

The slime itself is of sticky consistency and can easily cling to walls and ceilings, normally crawling at a slow pace, but moving at the speed of a snake in short bursts if agitated. Sometimes, the slime drags along objects that were in its way, but due to the corrosive nature of the slime, even non-organic matter erodes with time. Organic matter is corroded after a short period and imbibed into the mass of the slime, with the exception of any bones, teeth and eyes, which stay intact and are simply incorporated into the Duplicator Slime's body system.

The Duplicator Slime usually takes the form of a puddle, but can freely change its shape, forming tentacles or other limbs, stalk eyes, gaping mouths full of teeth, and even spikes or other weaponry formed out of bones. Combined with its cat-like intelligence, it is perfectly capable of using these abilities to hunt and overwhelm prey, and can even manipulate simple mechanical contraptions like doors. It is not so much malevolent as it is curious and hungry, which does not make it any less dangerous for anyone unfortunate enough to encounter it.

It takes its name from its mythical power and seemingly insatiable desire to duplicate any being it comes into contact with before assimilating its essence. All the Duplicator Slime needs to do is to bring any part of its body into direct contact with the body of its victim. In a few short moments, it rearranges its shape to mirror the appearance of its prey, with any excess mass forming a pool at the “feet” of its newly-sculpted frame. The creature tries to make the likeness as accurate as possible, even trying to shape any equipment or weapons the victim is carrying out of bone fragments or slime. Of course, even if it matches the shape closely, it still looks like a horrible green mass of slime, eyes and bones, albeit in the form of an animal or person.

Even more confusing and hotly debated by scholars of the arcane, is the slime's capability to not only duplicate the shape of a being, but also all of its physical abilities. Many a warrior has perished when faced with his terrifying slime monster clone and a mastery of the sword that matches his own.